"I think we hoped that we would've played Thursday," McGraw said. "I think we were anxious to get out, and I think we ran out of gas a little. The adrenaline was pumping."

Jessica Shepard scored 16 points and had eight rebounds. Jackie Young had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Irish (8-1), who pulled away after leading by six points at halftime in front of the third-largest crowd in Toledo history.

The Irish and Huskies switched spots atop the rankings this week. McGraw also publicly apologized for her team's behavior in the loss. Ogunbowale also tweeted an apology to fans after she earned a technical foul and unsportsmanlike foul late in the game.

On Saturday, Notre Dame clamped down on defense in the third quarter, allowing just eight points for Toledo while the Irish took a 58-45 lead. Young and Ogunbowale scored four points apiece during an 8-0 run that gave Notre Dame its first double-digit lead at 53-40.

After shooting 55.2 percent in the first half, Toledo was 7-for-32 shooting (21.9 percent) after halftime.

"There's only one or two places in the (Atlantic Coast Conference) that can compare with this," McGraw said. "This is definitely one of the best home crowds and toughest places to play, especially with the band and the students right there. They really add a lot to the game."

The win was No. 896 for McGraw's career. A perfect finish to 2018 would give McGraw 900 on Dec. 30 against Lehigh, and she'd become the fourth-fastest coach to reach the milestone. Four wins would give her 900 in 1,172 games, trailing just UConn's Geno Auriemma, Tennessee's Pat Summitt and Stanford's Tara VanDerveer for fastest.

Ogunbowale is now nine points away from becoming the fifth Notre Dame player to reach 2,000 career points. She is on pace to top Skylar Duggins-Smith's career Irish scoring lead of 2,357 points this season.

Cullop said Ogunbowale and Delaware's Elena Delle Donne were among the best opponents her teams have seen.

Notre Dame head coach Muffet McGraw reacts during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Toledo, Saturday, Dec. 8, 2018, in Toledo, Ohio. (AP Photo/David Richard) (AP)

"What's hard about this is Notre Dame doesn't have just Arike," Cullop said. "Every player on the floor is a formidable opponent, so you can't really worry about one player."

SHE SAID IT

"I've known coach McGraw since I was a high school recruit, she tried to recruit me, and she's been making me pay for not going there ever since," said Cullop, who went to Purdue in 1989, making three NCAA Tournament appearances as a player.

Notre Dame: The Irish have four games, including at No. 18 Marquette, before competing in the ACC.

Toledo: Hanging with an elite national program should boost the confidence of Cullop's team as Mid-American Conference season looms. The Rockets were projected to take second in the MAC West by the league's coaches.

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